Meaning & use
generation gap
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Meaning
nounusually singular
The difference in attitudes, interests and understanding between older and younger people that can make communication hard.
Grammar: Usually singular with the or a: there is a generation gap between us.
Patterns
- a generation gap between someone and someone
- bridge the generation gap
There is a large generation gap between my grandfather and me when it comes to phones.
The teacher tried to bridge the generation gap with shared stories.
The generation gap showed up whenever the family chose a movie.
Word forms
| plural | generation gaps |
|---|
Common combinations
- bridge the generation gap
- Cooking together helped bridge the generation gap.
- widen the generation gap
- Fast changes in technology can widen the generation gap.
- a wide generation gap
- There is a wide generation gap in how people use social media.
- across the generation gap
- Friendship across the generation gap is more common than expected.
- a generation gap between
- He noticed a generation gap between teachers and students.
Synonyms and how they differ
- age gap
- Age gap simply describes the difference in years between two people, while generation gap is about different attitudes.
- cultural divide
- Cultural divide is broader and may refer to many groups, but a generation gap is only between age groups.
- communication gap
- Communication gap focuses on failing to understand each other, whatever the cause, so it is wider than generation gap.
- generational divide
- Generational divide is a slightly more formal and more serious variant of generation gap and is common in news writing.
Word family
- generation noun
- all people born around the same time
- generational adjective
- relating to generations
- intergenerational adjective
- between different age groups
- gap noun
- a space or difference between things
Commonly confused: generation gap or age gap?
generation gap vs age gap
An age gap is the number of years between two people, but it does not by itself mean any difference in beliefs or habits.
Practice
Which example illustrates a generation gap?
Choose one answer.
A generation gap is a difference in outlook between older and younger people, so the grandmother and grandson fit. The others involve people of similar age or no generational difference.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “generation gap”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.